- KFF Health News Original Stories 5
- Heart Device Failure: Medicare Spent $1.5B Over 10 Years To Replace Defective Implants
- Latest Scandal Too Much For HHS Secretary Tom Price. He's Out.
- Do Pharma's Claims On Drug Prices Pass The Smell Test? We Found 5 Stinkers.
- Absent Federal Action, States Take The Lead On Curbing Drug Costs
- Latest Snag In ACA Sign-Ups: Those Who Guide Consumers Are Hitting Roadblocks
- Political Cartoon: 'Bail Out?'
- Administration News 2
- Price's Resignation Is Latest Bump Of Turbulence For Trump Administration
- With Health Care At Pivotal Crossroads, HHS Pick Could Signal What Path Trump Wants To Take
- Health Law 3
- After Promising 'Repeal' For 7 Years and Failing, The GOP Is Worried About Facing Its Own Voters
- Where Did It All Go Wrong? A Look At How Repeal Efforts Foundered
- Insured People Who Republicans Have Dubbed 'Victims' Of ACA Get Hit Again By Health Law Uncertainty
- Public Health 4
- Nobel Prize Awarded To American Scientists Studying Mysteries Of Circadian Rhythms
- STD Rates In U.S. Climbing And At The Same Time Resistance To Treatment Is Growing
- Massachusetts To Begin Far-Reaching Probe Of Addiction Treatment Scams
- Rule Aims To Make Liver Donation More Equitable, But Not Everyone's On Board
From KFF Health News - Latest Stories:
KFF Health News Original Stories
Heart Device Failure: Medicare Spent $1.5B Over 10 Years To Replace Defective Implants
The inspector general at Health and Human Services says defective pacemakers or defibrillators had to be replaced from 2005 through 2014, costing Medicare $1.5 billion. (Fred Schulte and Christina Jewett, )
Latest Scandal Too Much For HHS Secretary Tom Price. He's Out.
Tom Price resigned from running the Department of Health and Human Services after a series of news stories detailing how he tallied more than $400,000 in private plane travel paid for by taxpayers. (Julie Rovner, )
Do Pharma's Claims On Drug Prices Pass The Smell Test? We Found 5 Stinkers.
Drug companies are in the midst of a glossy publicity campaign to stop attempts to control rising pharma costs. But the devil is in the details. (Jay Hancock, )
Absent Federal Action, States Take The Lead On Curbing Drug Costs
Congress has yet to take substantive action on this growing consumer concern, but a number of states are flexing their cost-control muscle. (Shefali Luthra, )
Latest Snag In ACA Sign-Ups: Those Who Guide Consumers Are Hitting Roadblocks
Technical glitches with a mandatory credentialing course are, many say, the latest in a series of complications that could make it harder to help people get coverage. (Shefali Luthra, )
Political Cartoon: 'Bail Out?'
KFF Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with "Political Cartoon: 'Bail Out?'" by RJ Matson, Roll Call.
Here's today's health policy haiku:
DRAIN THE SWAMP
Price's charter flights.
Flying high at our expense.
Repeal, replace him!
- Daniel Kuhn
If you have a health policy haiku to share, please Contact Us and let us know if we can include your name. Haikus follow the format of 5-7-5 syllables. We give extra brownie points if you link back to an original story.
Opinions expressed in haikus and cartoons are solely the author's and do not reflect the opinions of KFF Health News or KFF.
Summaries Of The News:
Price's Resignation Is Latest Bump Of Turbulence For Trump Administration
Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price resigned Friday after uproar grew over reports that he'd used private jets for government travel when cheaper public transportation options existed. This departure is just the latest in a string of officials either stepping down or being fired under President Donald Trump.
The New York Times:
Health Secretary Tom Price Resigns After Drawing Ire For Chartered Flights
Tom Price, the health and human services secretary, resigned under pressure on Friday after racking up at least $400,000 in travel bills for chartered flights and undermining President Trump’s promise to drain the swamp of a corrupt and entitled capital. Already in trouble with Mr. Trump for months of unsuccessful efforts to repeal and replace President Barack Obama’s health care program, Mr. Price failed to defuse the president’s anger by offering regret and a partial reimbursement. (Baker, Thrush and Haberman, 9/29)
The Washington Post:
HHS Secretary Tom Price Resigns Amid Criticism For Taking Charter Flights At Taxpayer Expense
Price submitted a four-paragraph resignation letter in which he said he regretted “that the recent events have created a distraction” from the administration’s objectives. “Success on these issues is more important than any one person,” he continued. Not long after, HHS staff received a message from Price praising employees as “dedicated, committed” and saying it had been “a great joy” to serve with them. (Eilperin, Goldstein and Wagner, 9/29)
Los Angeles Times:
Health Secretary Tom Price Resigns Under Fire — But Other Cabinet Members Are Still Taking Costly Private Flights
“He’s a good man but I’m disappointed in him,” Trump told them at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington, as he prepared to board a flight to New Jersey, where he planned to spend the weekend at his golf resort. (Decker, 9/29)
The Wall Street Journal:
Tom Price Resigns As Health And Human Services Secretary Amid Travel Uproar
The controversy over the flights and sudden departure of Dr. Price comes as the Trump administration’s efforts to repeal the ACA are at a standstill. After another effort to overturn the law failed Tuesday in the Senate, Republicans now must choose whether to work with Democrats on health care, or continue their efforts to repeal the ACA. If the administration favors regulations to change the ACA, those changes would be spearheaded by HHS. Dr. Price kept a low profile at times during the long legislative fight to undo the ACA, as such officials as Seema Verma, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, sometimes took on a more visible role in talking to lawmakers. Some health experts have suggested Ms. Verma could succeed Dr. Price. (Armour and Hackman, 9/29)
The Associated Press:
Trump's Health Secretary Resigns In Travel Flap
The Health and Human Services secretary became the first member of the president's Cabinet to be pushed out in a turbulent young administration that has seen several high-ranking White House aides ousted. A former GOP congressman from the Atlanta suburbs, Price served less than eight months. (Alonso-Zaldivar and LeMire, 9/30)
CQ:
Embattled Health Secretary Tom Price Resigns Amid Scandal
The jet controversy marks the latest incident to raise ethical questions about Price during his seven-month term as Trump’s health chief. From the time he was nominated by Trump, there were questions about Price's stock trades in health-related companies that he could have had influence over as a member of Congress. The Senate confirmed Price as secretary in February by 52-47. (Williams, Clason and Siddons, 9/29)
Kaiser Health News:
Tom Price Resigns As HHS Secretary Over Cost Of Private And Military Jet Travel
Price, an orthopedic surgeon and former House Budget Committee chairman, was surrounded by controversy since his nomination to the nation’s top health post in January. He made questionable stock trades in health care companies while a member of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee and interceded on behalf of donors with federal agencies. Democrats in the Senate fought his confirmation, charging that he was too ethically challenged to serve as HHS secretary. (Rovner, 9/29)
Bloomberg:
Trump's Health Secretary Resigns Amid Private-Jet Scandal
After Price’s resignation on Friday, White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney issued a memo ordering government agencies to seek approval from Chief of Staff John Kelly before most travel on government-owned or chartered planes. (Edney, 9/29)
The Hill:
Trump Accepts Tom Price's Resignation
Don Wright, HHS's acting assistant secretary for health, will serve as acting secretary effective Saturday. (Hellmann and Carter, 9/29)
Politico:
Trump’s Breaking Point With Price
Tom Price’s downfall was his penchant for pricey jets. But his demise was months in the making, as the president continued to lose trust in the HHS secretary who rarely attended Oval Office strategy meetings, had little sway or influence on Capitol Hill, and was associated in the president's mind with one of the administration's biggest defeats — the failure to repeal Obamacare. (Restuccia, Dawsey and Diamond, 9/29)
The Hill:
Price The Latest In A String Of High-Profile Trump Departures
President Trump's administration saw its first departure of a Cabinet secretary on Friday with Health and Human Services (HHS) chief Tom Price resigning after uproar over his use of private planes for travel. Price's departure is just the latest in a string of high-profile exits in the at-times tumultuous first nine months of Trump's presidency. (Manchester, 9/30)
With Health Care At Pivotal Crossroads, HHS Pick Could Signal What Path Trump Wants To Take
Some of the names getting attention are Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services chief Seema Verma, Fla. Gov. Rick Scott and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, among others.
The New York Times:
Trump’s Next Move On Health Care? Choice For Secretary May Offer Clue
President Trump’s selection of a secretary of health and human services could be a turning point in a health care debate that has polarized Washington, as he faces a choice of working with Democrats to fix the current system or continuing his so-far failed efforts to dismantle his predecessor’s program. (Baker and Pear, 9/30)
The Associated Press:
Trump Seeks New Health Chief After Price Resignation
President Donald Trump is seeking a new health secretary to take the place of Tom Price, ousted after an outcry over flying on costly private charters for official travel. The Health and Human Services chief oversees a $1 trillion department, with 80,000 employees and jurisdiction over major insurance programs, advanced medical research, drug and food safety, public health, and disease prevention. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 9/30)
Politico:
Who Will Replace Price?
The rumored short-list includes former Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who would sail through Senate confirmation but would probably be considered too moderate on Obamacare, to Dr. Mehmet Oz, a cardio-thoracic surgeon made famous by his talk show, which Trump has appeared on. Other current or former members of Congress who could be considered include Rep. Fred Upton and former Rep. Dave Camp. (Kenen and Haberkorn, 9/29)
The Associated Press:
Price's Exit Adds Another Hurdle To GOP Health Care Push
The ouster of Tom Price as President Donald Trump's health secretary is yet another self-inflicted blow for Republicans wishing to put their own stamp on health care — and the latest distraction for a White House struggling to advance its agenda after months of turmoil. ... "I think health care is a dead letter through the next election," Joe Antos, a policy expert with the business-oriented American Enterprise Institute, said Saturday. (Colvin and Alonso-Zaldivar, 10/1)
Bloomberg:
Price’s Ouster Leaves Void In White House Health-Care Struggle
The disruption from Price’s departure could have an effect on how the administration moves forward on Obamacare, including a proposal Trump has promised to allow people to shop across state lines for health insurance and whether the individual mandate for everyone to have health coverage under the law is enforced, said Kim Monk, an analyst with Capital Alpha Partners in Washington. It could also affect emergency responses to hurricanes and other health-related disasters, Monk said. (Edney, 9/30)
CQ:
Next Health Secretary Could Set Course For Obamacare
Now, Price's successor will be able to put his or her own mark on the law that has been assailed by President Donald Trump as a disaster. Trump's nominee to oversee the nation's health programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, and a budget of about $1 trillion is likely to face intense scrutiny about the future of the law known as Obamacare during confirmation hearings before the Senate Finance Committee. (McIntire, 10/2)
Modern Healthcare:
Deregulation Agenda Expected To Continue Despite Price's Resignation
During his short stint leading health policy for the Trump administration, Dr. Tom Price spearheaded a number of efforts to ease the regulatory burden on the industry, especially for his peers in the physician community. While few expect the administration to dial back on that commitment, Price's resignation Friday as HHS secretary could, at least momentarily, force agency heads to tap the brakes on any bold new policies. (Weinstock, 9/30)
The Hill:
Five Questions On Healthcare Following Price's Resignation
Tom Price’s resignation as Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary creates a big leadership void at the top of the department tasked with administering a health law Republicans hate. President Trump accepted the embattled secretary’s resignation Friday on the heels of Politico reports detailing how Price’s travel on military and charter jet flights had cost taxpayers more than $1 million since May. (Roubein and Hellmann, 9/29)
The Hill:
Pelosi: 'Price Should Never Have Been In This Role In The First Place'
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) reacted to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tom Price's resignation on Friday by condemning the Trump administration for selecting him "in the first place." Price became the first Trump Cabinet member to resign on Friday after a Politico investigation revealed he had spent more than $1 million in taxpayer dollars on private charter flights. (Bowden, 9/29)
The Hill:
Dem Mocks Price: He Committed 'Unpardonable Sin' By Not Owning Private Jet
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) mocked Tom Price on Friday, saying the former Health and Human Services secretary committed “the one unpardonable sin” in President Trump’s world before his resignation. “Tom Price committed the one unpardonable sin in Trump's world: Being rich, but not rich enough to own his own private jet,” Schiff tweeted. (Carter, 9/29)
The Hill:
'Saturday Night Live' Mocks Price's Resignation: 'How 'Bout You Pay Us Back The Money?'
“Saturday Night Live” during its season premiere mocked the resignation of Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price over his use of private jets for official business.“ Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price was forced to resign yesterday after he was caught using almost a million dollars in taxpayer money to fly on private jets,” cast member Colin Jost said during the show’s “Weekend Update” segment. (Balluck, 10/1)
The Hill:
Trump’s Cabinet And Charter Flights: What We Know And Don’t Know
Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price resigned Friday following a series of public rebukes from President Trump and GOP lawmakers over his repeated use of charter and military aircraft, at public expense, for official travel. Price is far from the only Cabinet member to take private flights however, so his resignation isn’t likely to stem the controversy. (Weixel, 9/30)
Politico Pro:
Price Was Never A Player On Obamacare Repeal
Former HHS Secretary Tom Price was chosen by President Donald Trump because he was a doctor and a rising star on Capitol Hill who could drive the Obamacare repeal effort. But in his short tenure, Price not only misread the politics of repeal, he failed to assert himself as a power player on the No. 1 priority of his party, according to administration officials, lobbyists and state and federal officials involved in the repeal effort. (Cancryn, 9/29)
After Promising 'Repeal' For 7 Years and Failing, The GOP Is Worried About Facing Its Own Voters
"When something has been committed to and it doesn't happen and then it doesn't happen again, I think it's self-evident it isn't a good thing," said Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) who's retiring rather than seek a third term next year. Meanwhile, the Democrats are going to seize their chance to turn the tables on the Republicans who have been hammering them for years on health care.
The Associated Press:
Health Care Defeat Leaves GOP In Crouch, Dems On Offense
Republicans face a big problem following the collapse of their latest push to repeal the Obama health care law: Their own voters are angry and don't trust them. Right now, they don't know what to do about it. That's trouble for a party preparing to defend its House and Senate majorities in 2018 midterm elections that look riskier than most imagined months ago. (9/29)
The Associated Press:
GOP Unsure How To Deal With Voters Angry Over Health Care
Republicans face a big problem following the collapse of their latest push to repeal the Obama health care law: Their own voters are angry and don't trust them. Right now, they don't know what to do about it. That's trouble for a party preparing to defend its House and Senate majorities in 2018 midterm elections that look riskier than most imagined months ago. (9/30)
The Hill:
Dems Look To Turn ObamaCare Tables On GOP In '18
On Tuesday, Senate Republicans decided against voting by the end of September on a last-ditch effort to repeal the health law, acknowledging the measure wouldn’t have passed. The announcement effectively killed the repeal effort for the immediate future, as the fast-track budget maneuver Republicans were using to gut ObamaCare can't be used this year after Sept. 30. Even without a new GOP-made health care system to run against, Democrats believe they have enough ammo to hit Republicans by pointing to the previous repeal attempts, all of which scored badly in approval polls. (Roubein, 10/1)
And in other health law news —
Stateline:
So Far, All GOP Health Proposals Would Mean More Decisions, Less Money for States
Despite their latest failure to scrap the Affordable Care Act, Republicans have vowed to keep trying. If they fulfill that promise, their future proposals are likely to resemble their past ones in one key respect: They will ask states to remake the health insurance marketplaces within their borders with less federal money to do it. (Ollove, 9/29)
Bloomberg:
Senate Budget Won’t Let GOP Pursue Full Obamacare Repeal
Senate Republicans unveiled a fiscal 2018 budget resolution Friday that they intend to use to push through as much as $1.5 trillion of tax cuts in the coming months, but it won’t allow the GOP to pursue a full repeal of Obamacare. The budget proposal would still allow Republicans to pursue a much narrower attack on the Affordable Care Act, including repealing the individual mandate to purchase coverage. The resolution also would let the GOP use the fast-track process to open up drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Wasson, 9/29)
The Hill:
Cruz Warns Against ObamaCare 'Bailout'
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Friday warned against a "bailout" of insurance companies, a warning shot as other Republicans work with Democrats on a bill to stabilize ObamaCare markets. “It would be a serious mistake to bail out insurance companies, rather than provide relief to the millions of Americans who are hurting under Obamacare," Cruz said in a statement. (Sullivan, 9/29)
The Hill:
No ObamaCare Repeal In New GOP Budget
Senate Republicans appear to have conceded defeat on repealing ObamaCare this year, as the newly released budget resolution for fiscal year 2018 focuses almost entirely on tax reform. The draft released Friday only includes legislating instructions to the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee, which don’t have jurisdiction over health insurance. (Weixel, 9/29)
Roll Call:
Mike Pence Showered With Praise Despite Stalled Agenda
Vice President Mike Pence has spent countless hours behind closed doors with congressional Republicans negotiating on health care and other issues, yet the GOP legislative agenda has largely stalled. But Republican lawmakers are not blaming President Donald Trump’s Capitol Hill “insider” — quite the contrary, in fact. Pence, once part of the House GOP leadership team, was billed as Trump’s get-things-done guy. So far, the vice president’s appreciable legislative accomplishments are scant. ... House and Senate Republicans across the spectrum were eager to shield the VP from criticism last week after a second Republican-crafted health care bill failed in the Senate. (Bennett, 10/2)
Where Did It All Go Wrong? A Look At How Repeal Efforts Foundered
President Donald Trump was supposed to have a bill repealing the Affordable Care Act on his desk on Inauguration Day. What happened?
The Hill:
How The Effort To Replace ObamaCare Failed
When Republicans unexpectedly captured the White House and retained the Senate in November, Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) wanted to capitalize on the GOP’s political momentum right away by quickly passing a straight ObamaCare repeal bill similar to the one that passed both chambers of Congress at the end of 2015. ... What followed was a nine-month odyssey filled with ups and downs and ultimately a failure for Trump and Republicans. (Bolton, 10/1)
The New York Times:
‘Little Lobbyists’ Help Save The Health Care Law, For Now
Anna C. Corbin had not been involved in politics, had not even been to the Capitol before this year. But since March, she has made the two-hour drive here from her home in Hanover, Pa., 15 times so her sons, Jackson and Henry, could lobby against efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. Jackson, 12, and Henry, 9, have a genetic condition known as Noonan syndrome, which causes a bleeding disorder, short stature and digestion problems. They also have a new profession — “little lobbyists.” (Pear, 9/30)
Insured People Who Republicans Have Dubbed 'Victims' Of ACA Get Hit Again By Health Law Uncertainty
These consumers may have to shoulder soaring premiums if Republicans don't act to stabilize a marketplace that's been weakened, in part, by recent Trump administration moves. Meanwhile, former Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Chief Andy Slavitt accuses President Donald Trump of purposely raising premiums.
Los Angeles Times:
Squeezed Again: Americans Burdened By Obamacare Now Face Even Higher Costs Under Trump
Jim Hansen and his wife considered themselves fortunate when they retired five years ago. The Denver couple, both electrical engineers, were healthy. They’d socked away an ample nest egg. And they found health insurance that, if not cheap, seemed reasonable for two people in their late 50s. Then, the math started to change. Since 2015, the couple’s annual premiums have more than tripled and may hit nearly $18,000 next year. (Levey, 9/29)
The Hill:
Ex-Medicare Head Says Trump ‘Purposely’ Raising Insurance Premiums
The former head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under President Obama blamed President Trump on Friday for rising health-care premiums around the country. Andy Slavitt, who was acting CMS administrator from 2015 to 2017, accused Trump on Twitter of "purposely raising" health-care premiums as part of his plan to let ObamaCare "implode." (Bowden, 9/30)
Seattle Times:
Washington State’s Health-Exchange Rates To Jump 24 Percent
Washingtonians buying insurance through the state’s health-insurance exchange will see the largest premium increases next year since the exchange was created in 2013. The Washington Health Benefit Exchange board this week approved rate increases averaging 24 percent. The rates, first approved by the state’s Office of the Insurance Commissioner, will impact about 180,000 customers. (Blethen, 9/29)
The Hill:
Oklahoma Blames Trump Officials For Higher Premiums
Oklahoma officials are blaming the Trump administration for rising health-care premiums in the state after the administration missed a deadline to approve a key waiver for the state under ObamaCare. In a letter addressed to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tom Price, Oklahoma's health commissioner rips the administration for missing a final deadline for a State Innovation Waiver, which would be used to lower premiums around the state. (Bowden, 9/29)
Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Richmonders Brace For 2018 Insurance Hike; The Only Area Option On The Individual Marketplace Is Getting More Expensive
In Richmond and Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico counties, there will be only one option on the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace next year, through the national insurer Cigna. Its premiums are set to increase by an average of 50 percent, or an extra $400 on an $800 plan, for example. (O'Connor, 9/30)
Kaiser Health News:
Latest Snag In ACA Sign-Ups: Those Who Guide Consumers Are Hitting Roadblocks
While health care uncertainty roils Washington, the rest of the country is coasting toward Obamacare season. Open enrollment is just about a month away. But the current landscape is marked by funding cuts and other White House efforts to pull back on Affordable Care Act outreach, which has led some people to brace for what they foresee as the toughest season yet. (Luthra, 10/2)
Nobel Prize Awarded To American Scientists Studying Mysteries Of Circadian Rhythms
Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael W. Young win the 2017 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for their work examining the biological clock of living organisms. “Since the seminal discoveries by the three laureates, circadian biology has developed into a vast and highly dynamic research field, with implications for our health and wellbeing,” the Nobel citation reads.
Stat:
Three U.S. Scientists Win Nobel Prize For Uncovering Inner Workings Of The Biological Clock
The 2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded on Monday morning to Jeffrey Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael Young for their discoveries of circadian rhythms. The scientists “were able to peek inside our biological clock and elucidate its inner workings,” said Thomas Perlmann, Secretary of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine, who announced the prize in Stockholm. “Their discoveries explain how plants, animals, and humans adapt their biological rhythm so that it is synchronized with the Earth’s revolutions.” (Begley, 10/2)
The Washington Post:
Nobel Prize In Medicine Or Physiology Awarded To Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash And Michael W. Young
Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael W. Young have won the 2017 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for their work on molecular mechanisms that control circadian systems. Hall was born in New York, Rosbash in Oklahoma City, and they both worked at Brandeis. Michael Young was born in Miami and worked at Rockefeller University. In announcing the winner in Stockholm on Monday, the prize committee said they elucidated how a live form's "inner clock" can fluctuate to optimize our behavior and physiology. (Cha, 10/2)
STD Rates In U.S. Climbing And At The Same Time Resistance To Treatment Is Growing
“Several drug trials are going on now that we hope will provide new treatments for gonorrhea,” said Dr. Gail Bolan, the director of sexually transmitted disease prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “But these treatment trials take years, and we don’t know if these new drugs will be safe and effective.”
The New York Times:
In The U.S., 110 Million S.T.D. Infections
The incidence of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis is increasing, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At any given time, there are an estimated 110 million sexually transmitted infections in the United States. Chlamydia is the most common S.T.D., and the number of cases rose 4.7 percent from 2015 to 2016. The increases occurred nationwide; rates were highest in the South and lowest in the Northeast. (Bakalar, 9/29)
Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Sexually Transmitted Disease Cases Hit Record Numbers, CDC Says
The highest number ever of some sexually transmitted diseases were reported in the United States in 2016, according the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That included more than 2 million new cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis, according to a recent CDC report. STDs are rapidly growing among women, infants and gay and bisexual men. (Washington, 9/29)
Columbus Dispatch:
Sexually Transmitted Disease Cases Reach Record High In US, Also Up In Ohio
Nationwide cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis surpassed the 2 million mark in 2016, hitting an all-time high and prompting federal health officials to call on state and local health departments to refocus efforts in the fight against the epidemic. (Viviano, 9/29)
Massachusetts To Begin Far-Reaching Probe Of Addiction Treatment Scams
State Attorney General Maura Healey's office is conducting an investigation of people who allegedly prey on those with an opioid addiction by sending them to treatment centers hundreds of miles from home for expensive and often shoddy care paid for by insurance benefits obtained by using fake addresses.
Stat:
Massachusetts AG Launches Probe Of Addiction Treatment Fraud
The Massachusetts attorney general’s office is investigating a far-reaching insurance scheme that recruited drug users and sent them to treatment centers in other states to exploit their benefit payments, according to people contacted by the office and others familiar with the matter. Jillian Fennimore, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Maura Healey, confirmed the office is conducting a criminal investigation of addiction treatment scams, which have proliferated amid the national opioid addiction crisis. She would not provide details of the probe, including whether particular entities or individuals were being targeted. (Armstrong and Allen, 9/29)
In other news on the crisis —
The Star Tribune:
Minn. Medical Companies Work On Alternatives For Opioid Drugs
Medical device and drug companies in the state offer a panoply of therapeutic options using precise gadgetry, chemicals, electricity, radio-frequency energy and cryogenics to counteract intense pain, whether short-term or chronic. ... But manufacturers argue that their nonopioid therapies deserve fresh consideration in light of the realization that mass-produced opioid drugs carry more risks and less long-term effectiveness than the medical community was initially led to believe. (Carlson, 9/30)
Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Opioid Crisis Puts Ohio Jails At The Center Of Burden And Opportunity
If Ohio's jails already were already chock-full of people in need of substance abuse and mental health help, the state's opioid epidemic has them bursting at the seams. (Dissell, 10/1)
The Washington Post:
The History Of Heroin And Opioid Addiction In The U.S.
The president, a swaggering populist from New York, was worried that a national crisis of opiate addiction was weakening America and diminishing its greatness. So in 1908, Teddy Roosevelt appointed a handsome Ohio doctor with a handlebar mustache, Hamilton Wright, to be the nation’s first Opium Commissioner.Americans, Wright warned, “have become the greatest drug fiends in the world.” (Miroff, 9/29)
Rule Aims To Make Liver Donation More Equitable, But Not Everyone's On Board
“People in NY need to take care of people in NY. If they can’t, well they should move somewhere else," one person wrote as part of the public comment period for a rule that would change the geographic lines that determine access to donor livers. In other public health news: cancer, trauma from a child's death, vaccines, injuries from contact sports, autism, chronic fatigue syndrome and more.
Stat:
Will A New Proposal End A Civil War Among States Over Donated Livers?
The messages, many deeply personal, focus on the regional boundaries that divide life from death for patients with liver disease. “My partner passed away waiting for a liver transplant in Chicago,” one commenter wrote in support of a proposal to change the nation’s system of allocating livers. “Any move that can make access to transplant more equitable is a move in the right direction.” (Ross, 10/2)
The Washington Post:
With Checkpoint Inhibitors, These Cancer Researchers Are On The Cutting Edge Of Immunotherapy For Oncololgy Treatment
Cancer researcher Jim Allison stands at the edge of a small stage, fiddling with his harmonica, his unruly gray hair hanging almost to his shoulders. Soon, surrounded by eight other cancer experts who also happen to be musicians, he’ll be growling out the classic “Big Boss Man” before a boisterous crowd at the House of Blues. It’s a fitting number, says Patrick Hwu, who plays keyboards for the band and is Allison’s colleague at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. “When it comes to immunotherapy, he is the big boss man.” (McGinley, 9/29)
The New York Times:
A Child’s Death Brings ‘Trauma That Doesn’t Go Away’
Anne McBrearty Giotta doesn’t remember much of what happened on that August morning in 2013. One moment she was cursing her older son, Michael, who was supposed to have picked her up for a long-planned beach weekend, but was late and not answering his phone. The next moment, the police were at her door in River Vale, N.J., saying that Michael, 51, had been found dead in his home of an apparent heart infection. (Span, 9/29)
The Washington Post:
Mother Prepares To Go To Jail After Refusing Court Order To Vaccinate Son
A Michigan woman said she will “most likely” go to jail this week if she refuses a court order to vaccinate her 9-year-old son. And Rebecca Bredow, it seems, is willing to take that risk. “I can’t give in against my own religious belief,” she told The Washington Post on Saturday. “This is about choice. This is about having my choices as a mother to be able to make medical choices for my child.” (Phillips, 9/30)
The New York Times:
Cost Of Contact In Sports Is Estimated At Over 600,000 Injuries A Year
It seems obvious that there would be more injuries, and more serious ones, among high school and college athletes in football or soccer or lacrosse than, say, in running or tennis. But, how many more, and at what economic cost? Those figures turned out to be hard to come by, researchers at Yale discovered, but, using the best data available, they calculated that if contact sports could be made noncontact — like flag football, for example — there would be 49,600 fewer injuries among male college athletes per year and 601,900 fewer among male high school athletes. (Kolata, 9/29)
NPR:
Young Adults With Autism Deal With Mental Health Issues, Too
College involved "many anxiety attacks and many trips home" for Daniel Share-Strom, an autistic 27-year-old motivational speaker in Bradford, Ontario. It wasn't just the challenge of organizing his assignments and fighting the disability office for the extra time he needed for tests. It was also managing all the aspects of daily life that most people not on the autism spectrum take for granted. "Relationships are so much harder to understand or initiate when by default you don't really know what certain facial expressions mean or what certain actions mean," Share-Strom says. (Haelle, 10/1)
NPR:
CDC: Exercise Can Make Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Worse
Health organizations are emphasizing that ME/CFS is not a psychological disorder and that standard forms of exercise do not help. Instead, they're acknowledging that exercise can make the disease much worse unless doctors and patients are very careful. The Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention has already revised its patient guidelines on ME/CFS and is currently revising the ones for physicians. (Doucleff, 10/2)
The Washington Post:
Finding Medical Advice On Doctor Radio And Other Programs
Just before 8 on a Thursday morning, orthopedic surgeons Dennis Cardone and Joe Bosco sit in a tiny, dimly lit studio in a far corner of the NYU Langone Medical Center lobby, a thoroughfare to New York University’s school of medicine and hospital on Manhattan’s East Side. The hosts of “Sports Medicine” on SiriusXM’s Doctor Radio channel have been on-air since 6 a.m., helping listeners and bantering like old friends. (Vander Schaaff, 10/1)
The Washington Post:
Her Dizziness Started After Two Days On A Boat, And Then It Never Went Away
In 2007, a few days after participating in a two-day sailing race, Cathy Helowicz began feeling dizzy. It was as if the floor and walls were moving. A decade later, “it’s never gone away,” she says. “Sometimes I wake up at 4 a.m. and feel like I’m in a washing machine. ”Helowicz, 57, a former government computer scientist who lives in Jupiter, Fla., suffers from mal de débarquement syndrome (MdDS), a puzzling neurological disorder that leaves patients feeling as if they are rocking, swaying or bobbing when they are actually still. (Cimons, 9/30)
Bloomberg:
U.S. Sharply Cuts Diplomatic Staff In Cuba Over Health ‘Attacks’
The U.S. State Department ordered more than half its diplomats in Cuba to leave the island and warned Americans against traveling to the Caribbean nation after a series of health “attacks” on its officials injured 21 people. U.S. and Cuban investigators still haven’t determined the source of the attacks, which left some staff with injuries from hearing loss and cognitive issues to difficulty sleeping, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in a statement Friday. While no private U.S. citizens are known to have been attacked, the incidents continued as recently as late August, according to two State Department officials who spoke to reporters condition of anonymity. (Faries, 9/29)
NPR:
'Hypoallergenic' And 'Fragrance-Free' Moisturizer Claims Are Often False, Study Finds
For most people, buying a "fragrance-free" or "hypoallergenic" moisturizer that turns out to be neither, might be frustrating, but not harmful. But for people with sensitive skin or conditions like eczema or psoriasis it can be a big problem. "I will start to itch and I have to get it off my body right away," says 62-year-old Kathryn Walter, who lives in Ann Arbor, Mich. (Neighmond, 10/2)
The Washington Post:
A Model Decided To Tattoo Her Eyeball. She’s Now Partially Blind And In ‘Excruciating’ Pain.
Purple is Catt Gallinger’s favorite color.Pictures of the Canadian model often showed her sporting purple hair or purple lipstick, or the purple tinge of her numerous tattoos peeking out from beneath a tank top. So when the already heavily inked Ottawa resident had the opportunity to “tattoo” her eyeball — a procedure called sclera staining, in which ink is injected into the white part of the eye — she chose the color purple. (Wang, 9/30)
Media outlets report on news from California, Texas, Connecticut, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Florida and Maryland.
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
Are Gay Men In The Crosshairs Of San Diego's Hepatitis Outbreak?
Hepatitis A outbreaks underway among gay men in many different cities show that it is not just homeless people and drug users who face significant risk from the disease, the physician said. ...Given that recent epidemiological evidence shows that gay men are at a higher risk of hepatitis A infection than the general population, it would not be an unreasonable approach to double down on education and vaccination efforts in this demographic group, [Dr. Robert] Schooley said. (Sisson, 9/29)
Los Angeles Times:
Burbank And Glendale Work To Get Ahead Of Countywide Hepatitis A Outbreak
With health officials declaring a hepatitis A outbreak in Los Angeles County last week, the cities of Burbank and Glendale have been working on protecting their homeless populations from the virus. Both cities have started reaching out to the homeless in order to get them screened and vaccinated against hepatitis A. The L.A. County Department of Public Health has said homeless people are most at risk for the infection. (Nguyen, 9/29)
Texas Tribune:
Texas Health Agency In Disarray Amid Mass Departure Of Senior Staff
Under Charles Smith, the longtime ally of Gov. Greg Abbott picked to lead the state’s Health and Human Services Commission, Texas’ government health care infrastructure is hemorrhaging veteran employees and facing criticism for its response to the humanitarian crisis caused by Hurricane Harvey. (Walters, 10/2)
Dallas Morning News:
In Effort To Save Lives, Texas Maternal Mortality Task Force Identifies Death Risk Factors For New Moms
Knowing certain risk factors could help health care providers prevent pregnancy-related deaths in Texas, whose maternity mortality rate is the highest in the developed world. The Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force discussed identifying risk factors for maternal deaths Friday at the Department of State Health Services. It was the first time the task force met since lawmakers extended the group's existence during the special legislative session in July. (Wang, 9/29)
The CT Mirror:
Anthem, Hartford HealthCare Fail To Agree, Boosting Out-Of-Pocket Costs
Hartford HealthCare and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield failed to renew their contract this weekend, meaning that many Connecticut residents will face higher out-of-pocket costs for the health network’s services. (Rigg, 10/1)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Georgia Slow To Investigate When Nursing Home Patients May Be At Risk
Georgia nursing home patients who may be at imminent risk of serious injury or death have not been able to rely on the state to immediately investigate, according to a new report by a federal watchdog agency. (Edwards, 9/29)
Boston Globe:
Minn. Dental Therapists Offer Lessons As Mass. Weighs Expanding Role Of Mid-Level Providers
Now the debate over dental therapy is playing out in Massachusetts, where — as in other states — the proposal has sparked controversy among dentists, who worry that lower-paid workers with fewer qualifications will be given too much responsibility to care for patients. Many dentists also are concerned about their futures: If clinics can save money by employing dental therapists to provide most care, where will that leave dentists? (Dayal McCluskey, 9/30)
Nashville Tennessean:
Uninsured And Underinsured Patients Seek Free Medical Care At Saint Thomas Medical Mission
More than 600 health care volunteers representing 30 organizations offered free medical care throughout the day, helping those with limited access to health care. Pharmacists, vision specialists, dentists, doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, chaplains and other hospital staff dedicated their day to free lab work, radiology exams, teeth extractions, mammograms and vision screenings. “This is really about making sure everyone has access to medical care they need,” said Chief Nursing Officer Amy Wilson. “This is about bringing the care to the community who needs it and making it easy and accessible for them in one convenient location.” (McGee, 9/30)
The Philadelphia Inquirer/Philly.com:
Sale Triggers Loss Of In-Network Status For Five Area Hospitals
Brandywine Hospital, Chestnut Hill Hospital, Jennersville Regional Hospital, Phoenixville Hospital, and Pottstown Memorial Medical Center are now out-of-network for Independence Blue Cross after Reading Health System, the new owner of the facilities, rejected Independence’s last offer of a deal before Reading completed its purchase Friday, Independence said Sunday. The disruption for the 120,000 Independence members who use those hospitals is the most significant fallout yet from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s push into Southeastern Pennsylvania. UPMC has a joint venture with Reading Health to sell health insurance in Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery Counties. (Brubaker, 10/1)
Boston Globe:
Steward Health Care Completes $2 Billion Deal For Out-Of-State Hospitals
Boston-based Steward Health Care System said Friday that it has completed the purchase of 18 hospitals outside of Massachusetts, in a $2 billion deal the company said will make it the largest private for-profit hospital operator in the country. (Dayal McCluskey, 9/29)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
New Criminal Charges Filed In Atlanta Hospital Case
Another former Tenet Healthcare executive has been criminally charged in a federal healthcare fraud case that now accuses two former CEOs of Atlanta area hospitals of paying kickbacks and bribes in exchange for patient referrals. (Teegardin, 9/29)
Dallas Morning News:
A Second Tenet Ex-Executive Facing Criminal Charges In Scheme That Defrauded Medicaid
Another former Tenet Healthcare executive has been indicted on criminal charges over a scheme that the U.S. Justice Department says defrauded state Medicaid programs of at least $400 million. The indictment relates to a whistleblower case against Tenet that dates back nearly a decade, for which the Dallas-based hospital chain agreed to pay a $514 million settlement last year. (Rice, 9/29)
Tampa Bay Times:
Pinellas Mosquito Control Detects West Nile Virus, Targets Sawgrass Lake And Lake Maggiore
Two sentinel chickens tested positive for the West Nile Virus in Pinellas County this week. Pinellas County Mosquito Control confirmed the birds were located in the Sawgrass Lake and Lake Maggiore areas of St. Petersburg, and tested positive for the virus on Thursday. (Griffin, 9/29)
The Baltimore Sun:
Former Baltimore Sun Financial Columnist Jay Hancock To Compete On 'Jeopardy' Wednesday
Former Baltimore Sun financial columnist and Ellicott City resident Jay Hancock will give viewers a glimpse next week of how much he knows after more than three decades in journalism. The journalist, now a senior correspondent for Kaiser Health News, will compete on TV game show “Jeopardy” Oct. 4, the show has confirmed. (Britto, 9/29)
Opinion writers detail the prospects for bipartisanship to offer "a more productive path" for Congress to find a way to preserve what's working in the Affordable Care Act and to adjust the trouble spots. But others note the steps quietly being taken to undermine the ACA.
The New York Times:
Actually, A Health Care Deal Is Possible
The Republican leadership seems to have thrown in the towel on repealing the Affordable Care Act, at least for now. That’s one piece of good news. Here’s another: Two senators of different parties have resumed negotiations that offer a more productive path, one that could preserve the best of Obamacare while offering adjustments that both parties can accept. (10/2)
Bloomberg:
The Only Cure For Health Care Is Bipartisan
In grade school, a teacher made kids who got in trouble go to the blackboard and write multiple times: "I will not .... " It was my introduction to chalk. Here's a repeat reference to a lesson taught two decades ago by a Republican pollster, the late Bob Teeter: The party that owns health care is a loser. Today, it's a peril both political parties face. (Albert R. Hunt, 10/1)
RealClear Policy:
A Road Map To Bipartisan Health-Care Reform
The decision by Senate Republicans leaders to set aside the Graham-Cassidy plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has renewed talk of finding a bipartisan way forward on health care. But disagreement about what a bipartisan negotiation would be about is still an obstacle to getting a negotiation underway. (James C. Capretta, 9/28)
The Wall Street Journal:
Partisanship Is Breaking Both Parties
Health-care reform will have to come from both parties or it will not be accepted by America. It will have to be a compromise that comes from both parties or it will not pass the Kimmel test, the nonsensical but powerful showbiz bar such a bill must now clear. That means it will be more liberal than the Republicans want, and more expensive. ... Now the Republicans turn to tax reform. Again they move from a weakened position. (Peggy Noonan, 9/28)
The Atlantic:
The Ongoing, Quiet Repeal
When Obamacare became law, many people didn’t know how it worked. Eight years later that’s still the case. As of February, one-third of Americans were unaware that it was the same thing as the Affordable Care Act. The effect was most pronounced among people under 30—which does not bode well for young people knowing how, when, and where to sign up for health care under the law. (James S. Hamblin, 9/28)
The Des Moines Register:
Sorry, Healthcare.gov Is Down For Maintenance, Thanks To Trump Administration
A thistle to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for going out of its way to prevent Americans from securing health insurance. Though Congress has fortunately not repealed Obamacare, the Trump administration is actively working to discourage Americans from buying private coverage in exchanges created by the law. The agency is slashing spending on advertising and promotion for the upcoming “open enrollment” period when Americans can purchase individual plans for 2018. It has cut grants to about 100 nonprofit groups, known as navigators, that help many people in low-income areas sign up. It even shortened the enrollment window from three months to six weeks. (10/1)
The New Yorker:
Is Health Care A Right?
Is health care a right? The United States remains the only developed country in the world unable to come to agreement on an answer. Earlier this year, I was visiting Athens, Ohio, the town in the Appalachian foothills where I grew up. The battle over whether to repeal, replace, or repair the Affordable Care Act raged then, as it continues to rage now. So I began asking people whether they thought that health care was a right. The responses were always interesting. (Atul Gawande, 10/2)
The New York Times:
Why Public Health Insurance Could Help, Even If You Don’t Want It
It is anyone’s guess whether Democrats will unite around the goal of creating a single-payer health care system or even take a less ambitious approach — introducing a public health insurance option. Adding public insurance as an option in the complex American health care system has been treated as a consolation prize for those who really favor single-payer health care, but the lighter approach might pack much more punch than you might think. What’s more, the best way to see that is by looking at the Indian labor market and the Mexican grocery market. (Seema Jayachandran, 9/29)
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Miami Herald:
Puerto Rico Could Become A Public Health Catastrophe
In the days since Hurricane Maria ravaged Puerto Rico, conditions on the island continue to deteriorate and become a humanitarian and public health catastrophe that could rival the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. The fact that the power grid failed creates many obvious problems and some that are not so evident. When the sewer system stops working, wastewater—aka human feces and urine—and seaborne bacteria contaminate the water supply. (Tomás R. Guilarte, 10/2)
The New York Times:
America’s 8-Step Program For Opioid Addiction
Opioid addiction has developed such a powerful grip on Americans that some scientists have blamed it for lowering our life expectancy. Drug overdoses, nearly two-thirds of them from prescription opioids, heroin and synthetic opioids, killed some 64,000 Americans last year, over 20 percent more than in 2015. That is also more than double the number in 2005, and nearly quadruple the number in 2000, when accidental falls killed more Americans than opioid overdoses. (9/30)
The Wall Street Journal:
Addiction Shouldn’t Excuse Criminal Acts
Julie Eldred admitted stealing jewelry last year to support her opioid habit. A condition of her probation was that she refrain from using drugs. When she tested positive for fentanyl 11 days later, the judge ordered her to prison until an inpatient treatment bed was available. Ms. Eldred, 29, now claims the order to remain drug-free was unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment, because her drug use was a symptom of her addiction. In other words, she couldn’t help herself. On Monday the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will hear her case. A ruling in her favor could make it much harder to administer justice and get addicts the help they need. (Stephen J. Morse and Sally Satel, 10/1)
The Charlotte Observer:
What’s Happening To My Children Is A North Carolina Tragedy
As a therapeutic foster parent for the past 10 years, I’ve had the privilege of being part of the lives of 19 children. Due to no fault of their own, these children have been abused, abandoned, left behind, and worst of all, unloved. Their young brains have had the crap beaten out of them. I’ve also had a front row seat to the mental health system in North Carolina. In the past year, we’ve had two children with severe trauma-related mental conditions, and we’ve fought like hell to get these kids help. In each case we’ve witnessed what can only be described as a tragic comedy. (Billy Maddalon, 10/1)
The Kansas City Star:
How To Improve The Life Expectancy Of Kansas Citians
Health department research estimates that 40 percent of Kansas City’s deaths each year can be attributed to six social factors the health department has been monitoring, overlaying the data on ZIP code maps: high school graduation rates, racial segregation, low social support, individual poverty, income inequality and community poverty. If we want to see more Kansas Citians live well into their 80s, we shouldn’t focus only on the usual suspects, including chronic health issues like diabetes and heart disease. (10/1)
USA Today:
As Cancer Closes In, Where Do I Draw The Line On Experimental Treatments?
My path to the Egress from my brain cancer may be a bit shorter than I’d hoped even a few weeks ago. But I figure I can still complain about the way some human research makes me feel like a rat in a cage. I’ve known a lot about the value of research in medicine. Even back when I was a college student, I knew more than a few people who used critters to test possibilities. I don’t have a moral objection to research on rats. But people as the target? I can still handle a “yikes.” (Jeffrey Weiss, 10/1)
Bloomberg:
Extreme Early Detection Intrigues Cancer Researchers
There’s only so far you can go toward preventing cancer with a healthy lifestyle. Bone tumors in fossils show that people have been getting cancer since prehistoric times -- before smoking, before modern diets, even before the dawn of our species. And the race to cure cancer with drugs is up against another barrier: Many cancers can’t be diagnosed until they’ve had years to grow and spread through the body. (Faye Flam, 9/29)
Chicago Tribune:
Rauner's Stunning Betrayal Of His Conservative Base
For more than 30 years, we had a pact in this state. Abortion would be legal and safe, but tax dollars would not fund it, except in cases of rape, incest and to protect the life or health of the mother. That was the bright line imposed and respected since the state of Illinois adopted the framework of the 1976 Hyde Amendment, restricting federal funding of abortion. (Kristen McQueary, 9/29)
Los Angeles Times:
Warning: Too Many Warning Signs Are Bad For Your Health
Starbucks, Whole Foods and about 80 other places in California that sell coffee may soon be forced to put warning labels on grande lattes and coffee bean packages to alert consumers that the product within contains acrylamide, a chemical that may be carcinogenic. (9/30)